NEW SHIPPING TRUST.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1361, 12 February 1912, Page 8

NEW SHIPPING TRUST.

LARGEST IN THE WORLD. The Atlantic shipping "combine" is dethroned. It gives place in respect to tonnage and capital employed to the new British combination of the Royal Mail, Elder-Dempster and Union Castlo lines. These together form the largest mercantile fleet in the world. Before the Royal Hail Company acquired tho Union-Castle line there had beeu deals for the absorption, of the Pacific Steam Navigation, the Shire, Glen, and King lines. The following table shows the strength of the British compared with the principal foreign combinations:— Vessels. ■ Tonnage. Royal Mail and allies ... 301 1,270,000 Atlantic Combine 126 ' 1,151,000 Hamburg-Anierika 106 008,(100 North. German Lloyd 133 718,000 The several companies grouped under tho management of the Royal Mail Company had 25-t ships, with an aggregate of 950,000 tons. To this fleet tho Onion'Castlo will add 50 vessels, of. 320,000, tons. The wholo will bo tinder tho management of Sir Owen Phillips, who is now described as the "Napoleon" of tho shipping world. His colleague in the management of the Eldcr-Dempstcr line, Lord l'irrie (who is also chairman of Harland and WnlfF), has hitherto been the most successful organiser among British shipowners. The price to be paid to the shareholders of the Union-Castle line under the purchaso agreement is .£32 10s. for each .£lO share. A fow months ago tho shares stood at only .£ll. Before the deal was announced they had risen to £'2S each. Those who parted with them at lower figures are said to be complaining that the negotiators of the agreement evjdontly permitted early information of their proceedings to leak out, and that a few persons have iu this way been given the opportunity to make huge profits. - For a few weeks theer was an impression on (he Stock Exchange that (he South African Government, having failed to secure tenders for the carrying of its mails by a shipping company which would bind itself to have nothing to do with the rebate system, was contemplating the purchase of the Union-Castle line. Another report was current fo the effect that the South African Government and the Australian Commonwealth Government were discussing the practicability of establishing a joint service of Stateowned ships. It is now assumed, perhaps too hastily (writes the London correspondent of tho "Age" under dale of December 2) that an arrangement can be made nn easy terms with the new combination for tho mail service. While working as a separate concern, the Union-Castle line refused to abandon the rebate system, and the Eoyal Mail Company has teen jrivinjr rebates for some years in tho South American trade.

In order to be able to tender for the mail contract the combine will, it is understood, intimate that it cannot give rebates to shippers, but its position will remain so powerful that fhe Union Government may find it difficult to deal with when the question of a subsidy conies under discussion. If .the negotiations should fail, probably the only alternative in present conditions will "be a Stateowned line, and such a line, opposed by the combine and by fhe several indenen(knt lines trading with South Africa, might, have a precarious existence. The best of the Union-Castle liners are fine ships of 13,000 tons each, and there are several other vessels of 8000 tons each in the fleet.

It is interesting to note Hint the agreement which has brought the combine into being establishes a pension fund foi past anil present employees of the Union Castle. Company. For this purpose a sum of .£200,000 is to be set apart out of the company's profits in 1011, and J;T"iOO a. year afterwards until the total amount of the c e annual contributions reaches an additional .£IOO,OOO. The fund is to lie mniuiged by trustee. The "Union-Castle Company hns already a. benevolent fund amounting to about .£120,(100. This is to remain in the hands of the firm, and to 1» appHoel in its absolute discretion for the benefit of the past and present employees of 111" company. The balance, if any, after all claims have been satisfied, is to lxf handed over as a further sum to the pension fund. The affairs of the company have been managed by a "council" of nine members, nmonj whom are Lord Selborne, Lord Wolsoley, Sir W. An), and Sir M. F. Onunauney. The whole council is to retire, and euoh liiwnfcer is to be paid .C3OOO for rvutiiig- his seat.